House shoots down Quinn tax increase

Sunday

Creating more state budget chaos, the House easily shot down Gov. Pat Quinn's major income tax increase proposal today with time ticking down to the end of the spring session.

Creating more state budget chaos, the House easily shot down Gov. Pat Quinn's major income tax increase proposal Sunday with time ticking down to the end of the spring session.

The House voted 42-74 for Senate Bill 2252, Quinn's plan calling for a temporary 50 percent increase in the individual and business income tax rates to help fill a huge budget hole next year. It needed 60 "yes" votes to pass.

The defeat could force lawmakers to settle for a much smaller budget that would have to be fixed later in the year. Shortly before the vote, Democrats who control the House acknowledged a competing income tax hike approved by the Senate last night was far short of the votes needed to pass. Lawmakers are working for a new budget before a midnight deadline.

"We are looking at a very significant budget shortfall, and this would stanch the tide," said House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago. "We can afford to raise taxes. We can't afford not to."

But opponents - both Republicans and Democrats - said raising taxes could kill jobs and further hurt the economy without really solving the state's long-term spending and education funding problems.

"I'm not interested in helping stopping the bleeding. I'm interested in finding out why the patient is bleeding to begin with," said Rep. John Fritchey, D-Chicago.

Republicans also charged they weren't about to help Democrats solve the problems they didn't create originally.

"You need to be bipartisan all year long, not one night," said House Republican Leader Tom Cross of Oswego.

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